Volume I Issue 8 February 4, 1998
Gleaming the Guard Rail
It was
a dark and stormy morning. The icy rain poured down on the Washington Beltway
as we left Olney for Ferrum College in Ferrum, VA.
The caravan
set out in our customary order, accounting for speed and size. The truck
in front, followed by the van, and then our Corsica. Bill drove the truck,
with Colleen by his side. I was driving the car that morning, with Erik
riding shot gun and Devron keeping a watch on the insides of his eyelids
in the back seat. And in the van Grady drove Rebekah, Chad, Jesse, Jim
and Buzz. bobbie and Jon had driven down the night before to stay with
one
of Jon's professors at Ferrum.
We had
all been on the road for about two hours when it all went to hell. Most
of the passengers were catching naps, when we were exiting Route 66 in
Virginia for Route 81. We had all noticed the ice forming on the radio
antennas and hoods. It only added to the nerves, which had been on edge
since the precipitation started a few minutes after we left the Mobile
gas station in Olney.
The exit
from 66 to 81 is a bridge overpass. And as we all have read since we learned
to read road signs on long trips, "Bridge freezes before road surface."
I doubt we were the first vehicle to skid on this bridge. A truck skidded
in front of our truck and Bill broke to avoid the collision. He regained
control, but the van was already skidding to avoid our truck and the car
skidded to avoid the van.
The world
moved in slow motion as I saw the van. It seemed to fish tail and then
almost regain control, before it slammed into the guard rail. At that point
I had regained control of the car and was pulling the car to the right
side away from the van.
As the
van hit the guard rail, a clod of dirt was thrown up into the air. The
van then took off and began to slide down the guard rail, like some kind
of giant skate board. It slid for about five or ten feet and then came
to rest at that strange angle the Titanic assumed before it broke in two
and sank to the bottom of the North Atlantic.
The only
thought running through my head at this point was, "Oh, shit!" I parked
the Corsica and the three of us deployed like the Delta Force. Colleen
was running up from where the truck had pulled off. It would later turn
out that Bill had been watching the whole thing from the opposite angle
from me in his rear view mirror.
We got
to the van and two other drivers who had seen the accident had run up to
the van and everyone was yelling to make sure everyone was all right. People
in the van began to move, but but not quickly enough for any of our tastes.
Everyone had to get out of that van and that meant now. Trucks and cars
were skidding as they came off the ramp. As we were unloading Players from
the van two tractor trailers began to skid. All that was running through
our minds was that one of those trucks would lose control and hit the van
which was not emptying fast enough. After what seemed like an eternity
we had everyone out.
It looked
like a scene out of The Battleship Potemkin, as cold and dazed actors made
their way from the wreck. Buzz had struck himself in the eye with his own
hand and had a very bruised and bloody eye. Chad and Jim had struck their
heads, but seemed all right. And Jesse seemed to be going into shock, as
he shivered on the off ramp.
The emergency
vehicles began to arrive. And after all the van passengers were examined,
we found out how lucky we really were. Aside from Buzz's eye (which is
now nearly healed) no one was seriously injured. I then loaded some people
into the Corsica and drove to Strasburg and left Grady, Jesse and Buzz
at a Burger King, our base of operations for the next two hours. then I
drove back to bring more Players to our makeshift headquarters. We all
waited for Enterprise to bring us our second rental van of Tour 49.
If it hadn't
been for Grady keeping his head, it really could have been a great deal
worse. They had to cut the guard rail away to tow the van, The windshield
cracked, a flat front tire, a bent drive shaft, broken axle, and a ripped
out exhaust system were the result of the vans rather amazing flight. We
were all able to ride home to wait, until Sunday when, we had another chance
to go down to Ferrum to perform, our now postponed Shrew.
Ferrum College Take Two
Well Jon's
college was just as remote as he said it was. Our performance on Monday
was well received and Jon was welcomed like a conquering hero.
It was
nice to be doing a full length Shrew for an appreciative college crowd.
The Night the Players Went
Out in Georgia
The it
was a haul butt drive down to the Peach State. Several of the Players spent
the night with Grady's aunt and uncle in Athens and others of us made the
additional drive to Atlanta.
Erik's
family lives in Atlanta. We got to meet his mom, step dad and younger brother
Nick. They were extremely nice, considering they raised Erik. Jon and Bobbie
crashed there for the night and got a sweet home cooked meal, which featured
that old Southern standby country fried steak.
Devron,
Jesse, and I continued on to Atlanta proper and spent the night with my
friends Jon Steinberg and Sarah Cole. They took us on a driving tour of
downtown. there isn't much to stop and see on a Tuesday night in Atlanta.
We did however get out and visit Martin Luther King's grave site. It was
inspiring to stand there at night near the fountain and think.
We had
a nice stay at Augusta State University. You all probably know that Augusta
is where they have that event known as the Master's Golf Tournament.
There are
a number of golf courses and a number of cock roaches and mice in our hotel.
And while I never saw any of these vermin myself, at least one room full
of Players had to migrate north to avoid these terrors. We did however
only have to spend $8.50 a night on the rooms, so it was definitely worth
it, in this cheap skates heart.
Super Bowl Sunday Speed
Record
We then
took our show to Gallatin, Tennessee, and Volunteer State Community College,
home of Virginia Thigpen. This cozy little venue became the site of our
quickest load in to date. From parking the truck to focusing the lights
in 2 and a half hours.
The reason
for this speed? The greatest of all Super Bowl Games. We finished our load-in
and headed into Nashville, to watch the game at Bill's girlfriend, Cary's
home. There was great sloppy joe, seafood stew, and lots of beer. It was
one of those magic games where the food, the drink, the company, and the
actual event all make for a truly memorable evening.
Its the Charcoal Mellowing
. . .
Our final
stop on this leg was Motlow Community College in Tullahoma, TN. Tullahoma
being right next door to Lynchburg, TN. Lynchburg being home to Jack Daniel's
Distillery.
Colleen
twisted my arm and we went on the tour. And many of us would agree that
this was one of the high points of tour. I would rank it at the same level
as Cedar Point Amusement Park in Ohio.
Our tour
guide, Sam, took us through every step of the creation of this magical
beverage. He showed us the aging house, where the Jack sits for four years
in oak barrels getting its unique brown color. He showed us the cave where
the water for Jack comes from. Water which flows the year round at a constant
56 degrees. We saw the safe that killed Mr. Jack. We the giant boiler where
every drop of Jack Daniel's Tennessee Whiskey is distilled.
What makes
it a Tennessee whiskey and not bourbon? The charcoal mellowing process.
The whiskey is run drop by drop through ten feet of specially prepared
charcoal. This removes the harsh taste of the corn and barley and leaves
that smooth Jack Daniel's flavor.
Upcoming Events
We will
be finishing some shows at the Olney this week. Then we start our super
road trip. First we play Manassas and then the Eastern Shore. Then we go
west for shows in Rolla, MO and our long talked about South Dakota circuit
in Yankton and Sioux Falls. We're huge in Yankton!
Back to
Missouri for shows in Jefferson City and Fayette. Another trip to Chicago
and then our trip to Niagara and our sneak attack on Canada. And then much
more, but hopefully by then I'll have written another one of these. We'll
be away for nearly ten weeks this time around. Look for us to be back the
evening of April 15th. Writing us letters will be particularly important,
so please send your letters as follows:
Name of the Company Member
c/o Steve Sawicki
Olney Theatre
2001 Olney-Sandy Spring Rd.
Olney, MD 20832
Until next
time, be charcoal mellow.
Scott McCormick
If you have comments or suggestions, email me at [email protected]